Learn Baseball Terms to Understand the Rules of the Game

Are you in for an action-packed baseball in the field? Just like in other games, it is very important that you familiarize yourself first with the different terms that are used to refer to the plays and moves in baseball. If you go the field without any knowledge even about the fundamental baseball lingo, then you will barely have an idea of what your fellow players are talking about.

Thus, you have to learn baseball terms so that you won’t be left out in the game. Even if you’re not playing baseball but happen to be a fan, you will appreciate the sport more if you are familiar with the different terms used in it. The following are the most common and important baseball terms that you must learn before you head over to the field:

1. Ace – The ace is the best starting pitcher in a baseball team. Usually, the coach places this player at the start of a game.

2. Bing-Bang Play – It happens when a fielder catches a ball, which lands close to his belt or waist level. Since the ball has been caught below the level of the waist, this catch is considered a tricky one.

3. Bunt – It is a valid batting of the ball, even though the player did not swing it. The ball is just deliberately hit by the bat and tapped within the field.

4. Caught Looking – This term is used when a batter gets the third strike without any attempt to swing at the pitch.

5. Force Play – When the current batter becomes a runner, the current runner loses his right to stand on the base. This play is called force play.

6. Forfeited Game – A baseball match becomes forfeited when the umpire declares it should be ended because a team has violated the rules. The other team gets to win the game.

7. Fungos – This term refers to the drills that players do to warm up before a baseball game. The drills involve hitting a ball to a fielder during baseball practice.

8. Homer – Also referring to home run, this commonly used term describes the hitting of the ball that causes it to go past the reach of the farthest players in the field.

9. Infield – The infield is the playing field’s diamond-shaped area with four bases bordering it.

10. Pepper – This is also a warm-up drill routine for players before every game. A player peppers by standing and bunting grounds to his fellow players who are standing from 10 to 20 feet away.

11. Run – When an offensive player has passed the bases and gone back to the home base, the team gets one score. This is referred to as a run.

12. Southpaw – It refers to a left-handed pitcher.

These are just some of the many terms that baseball players, coaches, and the umpire use in the game. There are more terms that are worth learning if you are serious in becoming a professional baseball player or coach. You must learn baseball terms to understand the rules of the game.